Election news digest 16, 6 - 26 May 2009

Contents:

Imparsial Criticizes Prabowo and Wiranto's Nomination in Presidential Election [6 May]
With the presidential election coming up in two months' time, non-governmental organization on human rights issues Imparsial criticizes yet again the candidacies of two former military heavyweights Prabowo Subianto and Wiranto in the election. [full story…]

Also: RI election focus may fall on ex-generals [18 May] [full story…]

Rights Groups Say Elections Tarnished [20 May] [full story…]

House may see record number of women [7 May]
This year’s legislative elections will almost certainly see female candidates making up a record high 18 percent of the House of Representatives, the highest rate since the 13 percent recorded in 1987. [full story…]

Also: Jakarta Globe editorial: Give Women the Chance to Succeed [8 May] [full story…]

More Women Lawmakers, But Change Not Their Agenda [18 May] [full story…]

Jusuf Wanandi: Pending Critical Issues of the 2009 General Election [7 May]
Indonesia’s reputation as a budding democracy was widely respected after successful elections in 1999 and 2004 that were regarded as fair, peaceful and democratic. The legislative elections of April 9 this year, however, were messy because many legitimate voters were unable to cast their votes.  The good thing is that until now these mistakes have not delegitimized the elections, which could have dire consequences for Indonesia’s constitutional democracy. [full story…]

Jakarta Post editorial: Election Fiasco [11 May]
The final official tally of the April 9 parliamentary elections was very much as widely predicted. The Democratic Party (PD) topped, followed by two other centrist parties, Golkar and the PDI-P. The only surprise ­to come out of the late Saturday night  announcement was that the valid votes counted for only 61 percent of voters. A staggering 67 million people either did not vote, voluntarily or otherwise, or voted but had their ballots invalidated. [full story…]

Yudhoyono Asserts Himself with Choice of Running Mate [15 May]
THE Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has shed his customary political caution and chosen a pro-Western and pro-market central bank governor, Boediono, as his vice-presidential candidate without consulting his coalition partners. [full story…]

Factbox-Contenders in Indonesia's Presidential Election [16 May]
Reuters profiles of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Boediono; Megawati Sukarnoputri and Prabowo Subianto; and Jusuf Kalla and Wiranto. [full story…]

Also: Unholy matrimony: Presidential pairings [20 May] [full story…]

Tempo: Megawati-Prabowo: A Long Night at Batu Tulis [19 May] [full story…]

Parties split over support for SBY’s re-election [20 May]
Cracks appear to be forming in the coalition of 23 political parties backing incumbent President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and running mate Boediono, despite initial displays of unity. [full story…]

Aceh Party Wins Election, Without Celebration [20 May]
A local party, founded by former rebels of the Aceh Free Movement, was officially announced Monday as the winner of the 9 April legislative election, but no celebrations marked their victory. [full story…]

New Promises for RI's Ethnic Chinese [20 May]
Having just won seats in the House of Representatives, two Chinese-Indonesian legislative candidates have pledged to fight for the rights of the country's minority groups. [full story…]

KPU Names Poll Winners [25 May]
Despite the ongoing election disputes at the Constitutional Court, the General Elections Commission announced on Sunday the names of the winning candidates from the April 9 legislative elections. [full story…]

The Thinker: Let the Games Begin [25 May]
The past week saw President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his running mate, Boediono, on the defensive as they scrambled to fend off their rivals’ accusations that they were ardent followers of neo-liberalism. It didn’t really matter whether the majority of voters knew what the term meant; the way the accusation was deftly made left the public perceiving the duo as evil-doers unworthy of holding the nation’s highest offices. [full story…]

Insurgencies Litmus Tests for SBY, May Challenge Reelection [25 May]
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is coming under scrutiny over his credentials in making peace with separatists in Papua, as well as quelling sectarian conflicts in the predominantly Muslim country. [full story…]

Also: Papua police on alert ahead of presidential election [15 May] [full story…]

JG editorial: Toward a Healthy Presidential Debate [26 May]
Voters across the archipelago will not have missed the telltale signs of a political season in full swing. Grandiose promises by the candidates to bring prosperity to the poor, grow the economy
by double digits, restore the domestic economy, undo the current government’s failed policies. The list goes on. [full story…]

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Imparsial Criticizes Prabowo and Wiranto's Nomination in Presidential Election

The Jakarta Post [web site]
May 6, 2009
Desy Nurhayati

With the presidential election coming up in two months' time, non-governmental organization on human rights issues Imparsial criticizes yet again the candidacies of two former military heavyweights Prabowo Subianto and Wiranto in the election.

The public should question the nomination of Prabowo and Wiranto as candidates in the election, because the two were considered to be held responsible for a number of rights abuse cases in the country, Imparsial director Rusdi Marpaung said Wednesday.

The group cited the abduction of human rights activists during the 1998 turmoil, East Timor case and the Semanggi case.

“It is improper for them to be candidates of this nation’s leader amid unfinished investigation into those cases,” Rusdi said.

“We condemn all political parties and elites that nominate the two as presidential or vice presidential candidates.

"The nomination proves that political coalition is built only for the sake of power, not for the improvement of democracy and human rights,” he said.

Imparsial regretted that the country had failed to correct its past mistakes, and instead sided with human rights abusers.

The group said that it would be wise if Prabowo and Wiranto proved themselves innocent at court, rather than dodging their involvement and even running for presidency.

“It is hard to imagine there will be countries that are willing to cooperate with a president or vice president who are considered as human rights abusers by the international community. This condition will taint our image as a great nation,” Rusdi said.

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RI election focus may fall on ex-generals

The Jakarta Post
May 18, 2009
Lilian Budianto

Indonesia may come under international scrutiny as two former generals alleged to be implicated in past human rights infringements are nominated to contest presidential elections.

A possible setback to democracy is looming as Wiranto, a former general under Soeharto’s dictatorship, has been announced as Jusuf Kalla’s - the Golkar Party’s presidential candidate and incumbent vice president ­ running mate. The Golkar Party obtained the second largest number of votes in the April’s legislative elections, controlling 108 seats in the parliament.

Meanwhile, Megawati Soekarnoputri, chairwoman of the Indonesia Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), has picked another notorious retired general, Prabowo Subianto, as her running mate for the July 8 presidential elections. The PDI-P obtained the third largest number of votes and will control around one sixth of the 560 parliamentary seats.

The July elections will pit popular candidate from the Democratic Party and incumbent President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who has picked noted economist and Bank Indonesia Governor Boediono as his running mate, against the other two pairs.

Bantarto Bandoro, the chairman of the Indonesian Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), said Indonesia had won international praise by improving its rights records, after a period of battered credentials caused by a string of rights incidents in the volatile provinces of Aceh Nanggroe Darussalam, Papua and the former province of Timor Leste.

Western countries have recognized our ability to install democracy, improve rights enforcement, fight extremism... and successfully hold elections in a country of more than 200 million people,” Bantarto said.

However, the fact that military personnel still have a strong hold on politics and immunity from the atrocities they committed in the past send signals that we are still suffering from being a fledging democracy. Democracy should imply the principle of enforcement of justice,” he added.

Wiranto and Prabowo managed to build their political comebacks after creating their own political parties. Wiranto founded the People’s Conscience Party (Hanura), which obtained 3.8 percent of votes in the last legislative elections. Prabowo, meanwhile, established the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), which gained 4.5 percent of votes.

Wiranto, as the supreme military commander from 1998 to 1999, was accused of crimes against humanity in Timor Leste, which claimed the lives of thousands leading up to and subsequent to the 1999 referendum that saw locals opting for independence.

Although the atrocities have been considered as dealt with through discussions involving both governments through the Commission of Truth and Friendship, the UN has still sought to prosecute offenders.

Wiranto was also in command during the 1998 May riots, in which thousands of men and women died on the streets of Jakarta.

Prabowo, former Army Special Force (Kopassus) commander, was accused of the kidnapping and murder of anti-Soeharto activists during the 1998 turmoil.

Prabowo’s Gerindra deputy, Muchdi Purwoprandjono, former deputy chairman of the State Intelligence Agency (BIN), was put on trial for the murder of human rights campaigner Munir, but was declared innocent last January.

Neither Wiranto nor Prabowo have ever faced trial.

Their tickets to run for vice presidents are a claim to victory over the struggle of rights activists and families of the victims... and a major blow to the enforcement of human rights,” said Baskara Wardaya, a history professor at University of Sanata Dharma in Yogyakarta.

Indonesia’s political clout in the international arena rose after Soeharto’s 32-year dictatorship was toppled in a wave of demonstrations held by university students in 1998.

Indonesia has been dubbed as the world’s third largest democracy after the United States and India, having successfully held the first direct presidential election in 2004. As a symbol of recognition, the United States waived a military embargo in 2005, which had been in place since 1991 over rights abuses in Timor Leste and Papua.

Indonesia, the biggest democracy in Southeast Asia, is expected to spearhead a reform in human rights enforcement given its relatively leading position in the regional ASEAN grouping in terms of democracy and human rights, whilst other members of the ASEAN group have been trailing behind in terms of lack of political will to pursue these objectives.

Although Yudhoyono’s popularity is soaring high above the other two candidates’, the July presidential elections are still alarming reformists, who see reform as crucial to drive investment and economic growth amid the current global crisis.

Western countries will keep an eye on our elections to see how far we can carry on with our reformist agenda.” said Hashim Djalal, a senior diplomat.

Indonesia boasted about its successful democracy during US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s February visit to Indonesia, saying Jakarta was “an example of a Muslim country where democracy prevailed”.

Analysts say Indonesia-US relations under Democrat President Barack Obama will be largely shaped by democracy and human rights concerns given the Democrats’ history of foreign intervention to enforce liberal values.

Our diplomatic relations with foreign countries have been strengthened because we managed to build our democracy and enforce human rights...and such issues will continue to be a major concern for large countries like the United States,” Hashim said.

However, Hashim added the need to reform was not dictated by international interests, but was a mandate from the Indonesian people to their next government.

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Rights Groups Say Elections Tarnished

The Jakarta Globe
May 20, 2009
Sunanda Creagh

Almost 40 human rights groups combined on Tuesday to claim Indonesia’s reputation was being tarnished by the inclusion as vice presidential candidates of two former generals accused of rights abuses during the era of former strongman President Suharto.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is favored to win a second term in the July 8 vote, but faces a challenge from Vice President Jusuf Kalla and former President Megawati Sukarnoputri.

Kalla is running with Wiranto, a retired general who has faced allegations over abuses in East Timor when he was army chief.

Megawati is standing with Prabowo Subianto, another former general, who was fired in 1998 after troops under his command abducted and tortured pro-democracy activists.

“The emergence of Prabowo and Wiranto as contestants in the 2009 presidential election highlights a weak commitment by our political actors to uphold human rights,” said a statement from the group of rights organizations.

“The public must realize that to forget the crimes of the past will allow the same crimes to be repeated in future.” Both men have denied wrongdoing and said they were simply doing their duty as soldiers.

Wiranto was indicted by a UN panel over the bloodshed during Dili’s 1999 independence vote but never stood trial. He said last year the episode had been resolved.

Prabowo, who is from a wealthy family and was once married to Suharto’s daughter, told reporters in February his “conscience was clear” and noted some of the tortured activists had even joined his Gerindra Party.

Arief Priyadi, whose son was killed in 1998 when the military — under Wiranto’s command at the time — opened fire on students protesting against Suharto in Jakarta, said people should be careful with their votes.

“We, as a society, should be rejecting human rights abusers as presidential or vice presidential candidates,” he said. “To accept this is a step back for reform.”

The rights record of Yudhoyono, who was also a general during Suharto’s New Order era, was also brought into question at a meeting organized by the Coalition of Indonesian Human Rights Activists.

He was accused by some activists of neglecting human rights issues because of his government’s handling of the mud volcano disaster that displaced tens of thousands of people in Sidoarjo, East Java. The scandal over the subsequent compensation payments has hurt the government’s reputation.

Yudhoyono’s approval rating in a recent poll of 67 percent, compared to 12 percent for Megawati and 2 percent for Kalla, makes it look almost certain he will win a second term in office, bar some unexpected blow.

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House may see record number of women

The Jakarta Post
May 7, 2009

This year’s legislative elections will almost certainly see female candidates making up a record high 18 percent of the House of Representatives, the highest rate since the 13 percent recorded in 1987.

As of May 6, the Center for Electoral Reform (Cetro) had reported that 88 female legislative candidates had almost certainly secured a seat from the 560 contested in the April 9 elections. Cetro gathered the data from 66 out of the 77 electorates nationwide.

“We predict that the number may still slightly increase as there are more electorates to be counted yet,” Cetro executive director Hadar Navis Gumay said Wednesday.

“The total number will probably not exceed 100 as the remaining electorates, such as Papua, are areas which have conservative approaches towards women,” he added.

Activist groups have long sought a ruling to ensure that a minimum 30 percent of legislative representatives are women, but such a law has not been introduced yet.

Hadar said even though these current figures were still below the desired 30 percent, the results would still be an achievement for advocates.

The highest number of women seated in the House was during the 1987-1992 period, when women occupied 65 seats, or 13 percent, in the House. This dropped to 9 percent in the 1999-2004 period before rising slightly to 11 percent during the 2004-2009 period.

Almost half of the 171 million eligible voters in Indonesia are women, and from the 12,000 candidates who contested a seat in the recent general elections, almost 35 percent were women.

Hadar said the Democratic Party (PD) had the highest number of successful female candidates with 29, followed by the Golkar Party with 15 candidates and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) with 14 candidates.

Some of the prominent women predicted to make it into the House are former president Megawati’s daughter, Puan Maharani, Surakarta Sultanate Princess Koes Moertiyah, former Miss Indonesia and incumbent House member Angelina Sondakh and two actresses, Rieke Diah Pitaloka and Nurul Arifin.

Rieke, who triumphed over Taufik Kiemas, Megawati’s husband, in the West Java electorate II, said, “We should not get carried away about this achievement”.

“The PDI-P is still fighting for the 30 percent quota for women in the House. Even though we didn’t make it this time we have still achieved something very good,” she said.

“However, quantity is not always in line with quality. If these female candidates still carry with them a sense of inferiority in the face of the existing macho paradigm, then the record breaking percentage will not mean anything,” she added.

Rieke said the women, who are mainly new to politics, should be prepared for what is to come in the legislative sessions.

As of May 6, the General Elections Commission (KPU) had recorded more than 85 million legitimate votes from 63 electorates.

PD led the manual count with around 17.5 million votes (20.5 percent), followed by the Golkar Party with 12.6 million votes (14.8 percent) as PDI-P slipped to third place with 12.5 million votes (14.7 percent).

The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) is in fourth place with around seven million votes (8.25 percent) while the National Mandate Party (PAN) remains in fifth place with 5.1 million votes (6 percent). (fmb)

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Give Women the Chance to Succeed

The Jakarta Globe
May 8, 2009

Editorial

This year’s legislative elections may be bringing some good news. Preliminary results indicate that women representation at the House of Representatives may account for between 14 percent and 17 percent of the 560 seats in the legislature. That is a welcome increase from the current level of 11.6 percent of seats
for women. A total of 65 female legislators were elected in the 2004 general elections.

Observers and analysts have long contended that the nation was losing out because of the absence of a larger female representation in the House, resulting in the marginalization of women and their issues. After all, women account for slightly more than half of the population of this, the world’s fourth
most populous nation.

Women’s contributions to the legislature are no longer doubted. Female lawmakers have been particularly active in helping to bring about several key laws, such as on child protection and human trafficking, both issues of concern to them. A larger representation of women at the House will certainly benefit the country.

But numbers are not the only issue here. Having more women in the House would mean nothing if these lawmakers were chosen not because of their professionalism, but because of the wrong reasons — their ties to other political elites or even worse, because of their popularity as celebrities in other fields.

The government took a positive step in requiring that women account for at least 30 percent of candidates fielded by political parties for this year’s elections. But for many parties, this was seen merely as an obligation that had to be met at all costs, regardless of the competency of those women chosen to be on their candidate rolls. Increasing awareness among political parties of the importance of fielding qualified
female candidates is still necessary.

Unfortunately, it is also clear that women are largely underrepresented, not only in the House, but also in other walks of life.

There may be female ministers, officials, law enforcers and business executives, but on the whole, our society remains largely male-oriented.

The question is how do we, as a nation and a society, balance the role of women as caretakers of our future generations while at the same time giving them the opportunity to contribute to the economy and public life.

It is critical that women be given the means and freedom to make their own choices. They must be given the same opportunities as men to pursue professional careers if they so choose.

But the decision and the will to choose their own path will ultimately remain in the hands of women themselves. And better education for women is key for them to be able to decide wisely.

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Indonesia: More Women Lawmakers, But Change Not Their Agenda

Fabio Scarpello

Voting in the April elections

DENPASAR, Indonesia, May 18 (IPS) - Indonesia’s direct legislative election in April was a resounding success for women candidates. But instead of rejoicing, activists and political observers say it is unlikely to help the cause of women’s rights.

Titi Sumbung, executive director of the Indonesia Center for Women in Politics (ICWIP), says more women in the legislature are welcome, but the majority of female lawmakers lack political experience. The non-governmental ICWIP aims to promote gender equity in the country.

"We are pleased with the result, especially because it was unexpected," Sumbung remarks. "But it seems that women with a proven track record in defending women’s issues did not manage to win seats, while actresses, singers and relatives of powerful politicians did."

Results of the Apr. 9 poll showed a significant increase in the female legislators ­ from 11.8 percent to between 17 and 19 percent in the 560-member House.

This is a new record in Indonesia, a majority-Muslim country, where politics is often seen as a male preserve. The previous highest representation of women lawmakers was 13 percent, achieved in the 1987-92 legislature.

The Center for Electoral Reform (Cetro), an independent electoral watchdog, estimates that roughly 95 women are likely to be lawmakers, compared to 63 before the elections. The increase defied experts’ predictions of a decline in the number of female legislators.

This pessimism followed a change in the electoral law that cancelled the "party list system". The old "half-open" system required that at least one of a party’s three winning candidates in an electoral region must be female.

The election was instead contested on the basis that only those who received the most votes - regardless of gender – were guaranteed a seat in the House.

Women with political connections, or famous names in show business thus managed to gather many votes. Women’s activists who wanted to take their fight into the political arena, failed at the polls because they were not as well known or flush with funds to challenge the prejudices inherent in a patriarchal society like Indonesia.

Among the new female legislators is the daughter of former President Megawati Sukarnoputri, Puan Maharani, as well as the wives and children of several leading politicians. Also soon to sit in the House is Surakarta Sultanate Princess Koes Moertiyah, former Miss Indonesia Angelina Sondakh and two actresses, Rieke Diah Pitaloka and Nurul Arifin.

Among these, only the former has had previous experience in the House, where she was elected in 2004. But over the past five years, she has failed to impress and has not shone for her drive to force any of the issues that would improve the status of women on to the political agenda.

Some of the urgent concerns are regarding the dismal educationallevels of girls, serious domestic violence and an alarming maternal mortality level that puts Indonesia at the top of the list of countries with the highest death rate in Southeast Asia. Almost 20,000 women die every year nationwide in pregnancy and birth related complications. ICWIP’s Sumbung believes the new legislators need to improve their competence in assessing whether the House policies are gender-sensitive. "The only thing that we can do is to work hard to support them, so that hopefully they can better represent women," she says.

Fachry Ali, a Jakarta-based political analyst, remains pessimistic about the legislature’s commitment to gender equality.

He says that female members of political dynasties are likely to follow in the footsteps of their fathers or husbands. Moreover, most of the new women legislators have no experience of women’s issues.

"The wives or daughters of politicians bring with them the seeds of the patriarchal culture," he observes. "Despite the commitment of civil society, I am afraid the situation is not going to change any time soon."

There may be exceptions. Pitaloka, 35, a new lawmaker from the Democrat Party of Struggle (PDI-P) is well known across Indonesia as a star of ‘sinetron’ or the nationally produced soap operas.

"I am excited at the prospect, but also very anxious," says Diah, who has a Masters degree in Philosophy from the University of Indonesia in 2004. A campaigner for the environmental group Greenpeace since 2006, she was also part of the PDI-P’s women’s empowerment department for the last two years.

"I try to be optimistic that the women who have been elected, including me, can bring a gender-perspective to the House. But I am hoping that women’s issues are going to be of interest to all legislators," she told IPS.

Advise From Old to New

Nursyahbani Katjasungkana is a veteran lawyer-activist-politician with an impressive track record in
advocating legal justice and human rights protection for women in Indonesia.

She is the work group coordinator of Indonesia's NGO Forum on Women, a member of the National Commission on Violence against Women, and a parliamentarian with the National Awakening Party
(PKB), among many other things.

Yet, she lost her seat in the House in the April election. In an interview with IPS she says that "competence" is the key if the new female lawmakers want to be heard in the House.

IPS: What do you think was the reason for your defeat in the election?

NURSYAHBANI KATJASUNGKANA: Several reasons contributed. But I guess the main one was my party's decision to have me competing in districts with very strong Islamic traditions, where my background was not fully appreciated. I competed in the regencies of Banyuwangi, Situbondo, and Bondowoso, East Java.
The distance from Jakarta made it also difficult to travel there often.

IPS: What were your poll promises?

NK: I campaigned for women's rights and curbing corruption. But since I was competing in agrarian districts, I also emphasised the need to fight for land issues. I am a lawyer and I could have helped in that too.

IPS: What is your advice to the new, female parliamentarians? Most of them are said to be lacking in experience.

NK: There is no school for politicians. You learn by doing it. They will learn by taking part in the life of the House. They must be self-critical, accept their weaknesses and work on them. It is very important that they build their competence. In order to lobby people, they need to have a good and strong argument. They could achieve this by reading but also by interacting with civil society. Only when they become competent, will they be taken seriously.

IPS: What should women’s activists who want to compete in the next election, in 2014, be doing?

NK: It is important that they start preparing now. They need to create a relationship with the people, and they need support from the party too. It is much better if the party lets them contest the election in the area where they come from.

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Pending Critical Issues of the 2009 General Election

The Jakarta Post
May 7, 2009
Jusuf Wanandi

Op-Ed

Indonesia’s reputation as a budding democracy was widely respected after successful elections in 1999 and 2004 during the Reform Era, that were regarded by the Indonesian people and the international community as fair, peaceful and democratic.

The legislative elections of April 9 this year, however, were messy because many legitimate voters, perhaps up to 30 million, were unable to cast their votes mainly due to the incompetence of the General Elections Commission (KPU).

This problem was also caused by the negligence and irresponsibility of the government by not paying more serious attention and exercising stricter supervision of the KPU.

But this deficiency and mistakes, while widely protested by many political parties, civil society groups and individuals, were seen as not being organized nationally or with the intention to cheat, although this appeared to have been the case in some locations.

The good thing is that until now these mistakes have not delegitimized the elections, which could have dire consequences for Indonesia’s constitutional democracy. If the results of these elections are not ratified by opposition parties, for example, it could result in serious political confrontations between parties and would prevent the presidential elections from going ahead, creating a constitutional vacuum.

It will be one more plus for Indonesian democracy if a compromise is accepted by the parties and the general public. This compromise would see all legitimate complaints brought to the Constitutional Court, and the presidential election will go ahead following efforts to improve the voters list.

However, this acceptance can be revoked if too many voters (say above 20 percent or 35 million) are still unable to vote for whatever reason, or due to excessive political maneuvering by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) to limit the competition.

Another challenge to democracy could be seen in the presidential elections. The 20 percent of seats in the DPR that the Democratic Party (PD) won is a real achievement, but it is not decisive enough to guarantee a stable and successful government, even though SBY is likely to win this presidential election as many predict.

This election will be a prelude to the 2014 elections when a new generation of leaders is expected to take over, and therefore is considered important in defining the country’s future.

The SBY coalition now consists of PD and 4 Islamic or Islam-based parties: The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), the National Awakening Party (PKB), the National Mandate Party (PAN) and the United Development Party (PPP). The PD won because of SBY’s popularity, but his party does not have a strong ideology,
infrastructure or leaders. It can be expected that PKS and the three other Islam-based parties will fill this vacuum.

To a certain extent this has already been happening, although their influence is rather limited due to the presence of other parties, especially Golkar.

Things will be different when PD and SBY form a coalition with only Islam-based parties, especially the conservative PKS. The Islam-based parties are not always friendly toward each other, but on ideological matters they tend to stick together and can become a formidable united front to lobby SBY and his government.

Since SBY is generally perceived as a weak leader, there is the concern that he will give in on many ideological issues as already happened with the case of the 50 districts or so that have adopted Sharia Law; the anti-pornography legislation; and the Ahmadiyah case. This concern has been expressed by Muslims
and non-Muslims alike.

PKS is not seen as having accepted pluralism, and although they have not openly campaigned for imposing Islamic Law, they will not oppose the implementation of Sharia Law in Indonesia in the future.

What SBY has done by forming a coalition between PD and the Islamic parties could be dangerous for the future development of plurality and democracy in Indonesia.

It will also lead to the emergence of two blocs, namely a heavily Islam-based coalition (in which PD will be considered a lightweight) and another coalition that is nationalist-based: Golkar Party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of struggle (PDI-P), the People’s Conscience Party (Hanura) and the Great Indonesia Party (Gerindra), that could create political instability due to ideological confrontations.

The opposition in parliament will be critical and should be strengthened. A united front consisting of PDI-P, the Golkar, Gerindra and Hanura parties has been proclaimed at the end of April. They will have around 40 percent of the seats ­ about even with those of the SBY coalition.

The role and position of the opposition is very critical in a democracy. Opposition parties not only influence policies and can control the government through legislation and the budget, but also have time and opportunities to consolidate themselves and to formulate strategies to respond effectively to emerging
challenges faced by the nation, and in so doing win the following elections.

The second challenge is created by the rise of Lt. Gen. (ret) Prabowo and his Gerindra Party. He is still a very controversial person due to his role as the Army’s Special Forces (Kopassus) and Strategic Reserve Command (Kostrad) commander at the end of the Soeharto regime. This has been clearly described in Lt.
General (Ret) Sintong Pandjaitan’s memoirs.

Prabowo will be opposed by many, despite his well run campaigns.

It remains to be seen whether he will be able to build his democratic credentials and clean up his tarnished record in five years to come, to emerge as a credible leader in 2014.

The third challenge is the fragmentation of the opposition into two pairs of candidates, one led by Megawati Soekarnoputri and another one by Vice President Jusuf Kalla, who is also the Golkar Party chairman.

At this stage, it is clear that independently neither of them has a chance against the popular SBY. Only if they can join forces, perhaps with the involvement of other parties (at least Hanura and Gerindra) will they have a fighting chance. That is why they must put aside their personal ambitions and interests.

It is critical for the future of democracy in Indonesia that there will be a good and balanced competition for the presidency.

The writer is the vice chairman of the CSIS Board of Trustees

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Election Fiasco

The Jakarta Post
May 11, 2009

Editorial

The final official tally of the April 9 parliamentary elections was very much as widely predicted. The Democratic Party (PD) topped, followed by two other centrist parties, Golkar and the PDI-P. Nine political parties in all will take up the 560 seats at the House of Representatives while 29 others were eliminated.

The only surprise ­ shocking is more apt ­ to come out of the late Saturday night announcement was that 104 million valid votes represented. Considering that 171 million people were registered, the valid votes counted for only 61 percent of voters. A staggering 67 million people either did not vote, voluntarily or otherwise, or voted but had their ballots invalidated. Excluded from this figure are people who could not vote because they were not on the voter list. We will never know the exact number of disenfranchised voters, needless to say, the number was far too high.

If the number of votes measures the popular support the next House of Representatives enjoys, it gets worse. More than 19 million votes, or 18 percent of the total, were “wasted” because they went to the 29 parties that failed to make it to the House. Effectively, the new House will only enjoy the support of less
than 43 percent of the voters. Talk about legitimacy.

Can the next House really claim to represent the interests of the people for the next five years given its low popular support? Will the political parties sign the results of the election nevertheless, knowing that millions of people were disenfranchised through no fault of their own? Should we still proceed with the presidential election on July 8?

Here is a national election that leaves more questions than answers. Let’s hope the Constitutional Court settles these questions as it deals with petitions in the next few days from various people and organizations protesting the final election results. As far as the major political parties are concerned, they will move on to prepare for the July elections, including forming coalitions. With the official results, the real bargaining begins on nominating the presidential and vice presidential candidates.

PD is the only party to have passed the minimum threshold of 20 percent of House seats to earn the right to nominate their candidate, the incumbent President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. He will still need to form a coalition with other parties, if not to pick a running mate from, at least to beef up his party’s strength in the House. The combination of Golkar and Hanura ensures they have the right to field their candidate, most
likely Jusuf Kalla, Yudhoyono’s estranged Vice President. The PDI-P of former president Megawati Soekarnoputri is still working to forge its own coalition.

Political expediency, while important, cannot come at the expense of credibility. These preparations are all well and good to ensure that the nation will have a new democratically elected government in place by mid October. But someone had better come up with the right answer to the big question: How to deal with the fact that millions of people had their constitutional right to vote violated on April 9.

So far, we have only heard the government and the election commission passing the buck. Until someone comes up with a satisfactory answer, or even an apology for the fiasco, we refrain from extending our congratulations to the winners.

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Yudhoyono Asserts Himself with Choice of Running Mate

The Sydney Morning Herald
Friday, May 15, 2009
Tom Allard Herald Correspondent in Jakarta

THE Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has shed his customary political caution and chosen a pro-Western and pro-market central bank governor, Boediono, as his vice-presidential candidate without consulting his coalition partners.

The selection of Dr Boediono, to be formally confirmed today, has left Dr Yudhoyono's Islamist allies threatening to withdraw support, because they view Dr Boediono as a "neoliberal" and because they were told of the choice by a junior aide.

Riding high in the polls and emboldened by a decisive victory in last month's legislative election, Dr Yudhoyono is emerging as a far more assertive political strategist as he seeks a second five-year term as president. In his first term he developed a reputation for indecisiveness.

"He is now very, very confident about his popularity so he really doesn't give a damn," said Muhammed Qodari, a political analyst from Indo Barometer. "He doesn't really care about the reaction from other political parties in his coalition. Maybe he wants to show them he's in charge."

While Dr Yudhoyono's main coalition partners have threatened to withdraw support this week, none have acted to do so. The disgruntled parties, the Prosperous Justice Party and National Mandate Party, were meeting last night to consider their position. The signs were they would come back to Dr Yudhoyono.
If they do, it will confirm his newly expressed political strength.

Dr Boediono, who goes by one name, has a reputation as a talented economic policy maker but lacks any political base and is not well known by most Indonesians. He has close links to the West - he was educated in the US and Australia - and favours further economic liberalisation.

"SBY's political opponents will target Boediono," Mr Qodari said. "He could become an Achilles heel for SBY. His pro-Western and pro-market views will become the target."

Presidential and vice-presidential candidates have until tomorrow to nominate, and the jockeying by various parties is becoming more intense.

It is almost certain that Dr Yudhoyono and Dr Boediono will run off against a ticket of the current Vice-President, Jusuf Kalla, and the former general Wiranto.

A third entrant is likely to be the former president Megawati Soekarnoputri , with the former general Prabowo Subianto as her running mate. They held talks yesterday and declared themselves close to an agreement. Ms Soekarnoputri was expected to make an announcement late last night.

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FACTBOX-Contenders in Indonesia's Presidential Election

JAKARTA, May 16 (Reuters) - Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono faces a challenge from Vice President Jusuf Kalla and opposition leader Megawati Sukarnoputri in an election to set the pace of reform in Southeast Asia's biggest economy. With only hours left before a deadline to register expires on
Saturday, the presidential race is set to pit the popular reformer Yudhoyono against a political elite with its roots in the Suharto era.

Here are the three pairs of candidates for the July 8 election: (The presidential candidate is named first)

SUSILO BAMBANG YUDHOYONO AND BOEDIONO

* President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, 59, is seeking a second term in office and will run with respected technocrat and central bank governor, Boediono, as his vice president.

Yudhoyono is heavily tipped to win re-election and in a recent poll 67 percent said they would support him, while his pairing with Boediono had a 70 percent approval rating.

The president has highlighted the better stability his administration has brought to Indonesia in terms of security and management of the economy, while he is also getting credit for progress made tackling endemic graft.

His Democrat Party won about a fifth of the votes in parliamentary elections last month, up from 7.5 percent in 2004, meaning he should have less need to hand out ministerial posts to secure support in parliament from other political parties.

A second Yudhoyono term is regarded as the most investor friendly outcome and the markets have widely discounted this, helping make the rupiah the best performing currency in Asia this year and driving up the benchmark stock index.

MEGAWATI SUKARNOPUTRI AND PRABOWO SUBIANTO

* Former President Megawati Sukarnoputri, 62, and ex-general Prabowo Subianto, 58, would once have seemed an impossible pairing. As chair of the PDI-P party, Megawati was Indonesia's leading opposition figure in the dying days of the Suharto era, while Prabowo was once married to Suharto's daughter and the
former head of special forces was sacked from the army in 1998 over the kidnap of pro-democracy activists (including PDI-P members).

Prabowo, who is from a wealthy and connected family, is new to politics and only launched in February 2008 the Gerindra party (the Greater Indonesia Movement Party), which advocates a stronger Indonesia and buying local goods.

Now, the pairing is united in opposition to Yudhoyono but the deal took weeks of wrangling because both wanted to be president, with Megawati finally winning out.

The market is unlikely to welcome this combination. Megawati's lacklustre performance on the economy and tackling graft when president between 2001 and 2004 is considered to have lost her the 2004 election to Yudhoyono.

A recent poll gave Megawati, the daughter of Indonesia's charismatic first president, Sukarno, only a 12 percent approval rating, while the Megawati-Prabowo combination fared slightly better at 21 percent.

JUSUF KALLA AND WIRANTO

Vice President Kalla, 67, is a Sulawesi-born former businessman who chairs the Golkar Party, the political machine of Suharto, while Wiranto is a Javanese former armed forces chief who now heads the Hanura party.

Wiranto, 62, has been dogged by allegations over his human rights record when army chief. He was indicted by a U.N. panel over abuses committed by troops under his command in East Timor in 1999, but has denied any wrongdoing.

The pairing is expected to favour nationalistic policies and considered likely to resist reform of the bloated civil service.

The two have limited support: Kalla's approval rating is 2 percent, while Wiranto has 1 percent, according to a recent poll.

(Compiled by Sunanda Creagh and Olivia Rondonuwu; Editing by Ed Davies)

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Unholy matrimony: Presidential pairings

The Jakarta Post
May 20, 2009
Julia Suryakusuma

Op-Ed

People often cry for joy at weddings because most faiths see marriage as the sacred joining together of a man and a woman (in the old days that is . nowadays, any combination goes!). Traditionally, marriage was also a rite of passage to adulthood and it is still seen as a union that enables the marital couple to fulfill themselves physically, emotionally and socially – not to mention economically.

In Christianity, it's known as holy matrimony, or the sacrament of marriage, whereby divine intervention is present. Catholics even believe that it is necessary for salvation. Since last week, however, we've certainly had reason to weep - not for joy, alas, but because of some unholy matrimonies of the political sort, more specifically, some rather unfulfilling presidential couplings, with divine intervention decidedly absent.

I picked up a copy of this week's Sunday Post (May 17, 2009) only to be greeted by the triple vision of pairings for president and vice president in the coming July elections. "Ah, it's official", I thought.

Jusuf Kalla, incumbent Vice-President, was pictured with Gen. (ret) Wiranto, both clad in pure white shirts (symbolizing purity - but who are they trying to kid!). Incumbent President SBY (Soesilo Bambang Yudhoyono) was wearing a dusty-blue batik shirt (the color of a true Democrat, but a bit dusty after four
years of governing - not surprising!) and his running mate Boediono was in baby blue (well, he's a newcomer after all).

The last photo was of Megawati Soekarnoputri in red (what else?) and Lt. Gen. (ret) Prabowo Subianto in white (of course!), making them the perfect personification of Indonesia, as symbolized by our red-and-white national flag.

The next morning, my paper greeted me with another set of poignant images of these unholy matrimonies that this time woke me up faster than my morning juice ever has. All contestants except SBY and Boediono were there, pictured in blue bathrobes (actually they were hospital gowns) after they underwent the obligatory physical, and, they say, mental health, screening (I'm not so sure). Mega and Prabowo were waving with big smiles on their faces, Wiranto had both hands up with a gesture that said "come on, take me on!", while Kalla, for once, had a demure smile and an equally demure posture (maybe because his wife was
watching).

Perhaps I've got a dirty mind, but Mega and Prabowo side-by-side in matching bathrobes looked so much like a "morning after" snap. I wondered whether Mega's supporters were gagging too (see The Post April 25, 2009), or whether her dad, Sukarno, was turning in his grave. For that matter, regional branches of Golkar might also be feeling a bit queasy at the Kalla-Wiranto marriage, given that many think Kalla's move to be an "unwise and emotional" response to the spectacular victory of SBY's Democrat Party in the recent legislative elections (see The Post May 5, 2009). But desperate is more like it - just like Mega is with Prabowo.

What is it with all these ex-generals anyway? Do political advisors really think Indonesians will only vote for
superannuated soldiers? I think the recent elections proved voters are starting to pay a lot more attention to performance and policies rather than personalities. So, early-morning shock aside, let's look at the substance of these unholy political pairings. The headline accompanying the photos on Sunday said: "Three-horse race set to be a close call". Oh really? Are the three tickets really so close together when it comes to policies?

The prosperity of a nation depends on economic performance, so of course Kadin (the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry) is hosting a debate with the three presidential couples this Monday and Wednesday "to help gain more in-depth information about the visions and missions of the candidates,
including their strategies for developing the economy and business".

Both SBY-Boediono and Kalla-Wiranto have confirmed that they will front up for the grilling, but Mega-Prabowo remain undecided. As the old Indonesian saying goes, it's a simalakama fruit situation for them. Simalakama fruit? If you eat it, your mother dies, if you don't eat it, your father dies. What it means is that Mega-Prabowo loose either way: if they don't show up, they've chickened out; if they turn up, they'll get thrashed - most likely anyway.

Well, just look at their dodgy economic policies. They aim for a 10 percent economic growth rate for Indonesia during a 5-year presidency. Ten percent? Even China, with its humungous economy, has only succeeded in achieving 8 percent, meaning it now contributes about 50 percent to the global economy, given that the EU, US and Japan are on hold for the time being.

And Mega-Prabowo's other policies? Economic populism, abolish overseas loans, give priority to domestic possession of natural resources, including mining, oil and gas, and empower of traditional markets, farmers and fishermen. Translation: forget development, because foreign investment will finally give up completely on Indonesia. If these two newly-weds show up at the Kadin event they'll be eaten alive!

By comparison, Kalla-Wiranto, the other odd couple, seem relatively sane, despite aiming for an unachievable 8 percent average annual economic growth. They offer national security and stability (I didn't realize we were falling apart, but maybe Wiranto's still got Timor Leste on the brain), guarantee to boost investment, empower small-and medium-sized businesses and prioritize the purchase of local goods.

And SBY and Boediono? Accountable governance, including no bribery and no conflict of interest between family businesses and public functions, state intervention in the economy if necessary, reform of the bureaucracy and the prioritization of the purchase of local goods. Boring, but grounded in the good
governance drive that proved a winner for SBY's team in the recent legislative ballot. And no bombastic promises about impossible economic growth, just steady as she goes.

So which marriage will go the distance? If policy is any guide, it's SBY and Boediono, the only grown-ups with something in common with each other. They offer a dull, but democratic conservative technocracy.

The other couples look like ugly shot-gun marriages to me, forced unwillingly to the altar and guaranteed to start fighting as soon as the confetti is swept away - and that means that if they're elected, the rest of us will really have something to cry about!

The writer is the author of Sex, Power and Nation

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MEGAWATI-PRABOWO: A Long Night at Batu Tulis

Tempo Magazine
No. 38/IX
May 19-25, 2009

Megawati and Prabowo agreed to be running mates. Three female politicians played an important role in the negotiations.

DESPITE having bad flu, Prabowo Subianto tried to appear cheerful. “Good, fine…everything is going well,” said this Chairman of the Board of Patrons of the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra). Nevertheless, the face of this retired lieutenant-general appeared weary. Lengthy negotiations with the
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) at the Batu Tulis Palace, Bogor, had just ended on Friday night.

Prabowo’s car, together with two other cars, headed straight for Jakarta. “This night “Mega-Pro” is being publically declared,” said Tjahjo Kumolo, PDI-P Chairman. In less than an hour, Prabowo arrived at Megawati Soekarnoputri’s home on Jl. Teuku Umar.

The host arrived a few minutes later. It turned out that she had stopped by MMC Hospital in Kuningan, Jakarta, where husband Taufiq Kiemas has been undergoing treatment since Wednesday of last week.

Nearing midnight, the pair of Megawati-Prabowo was announced in a garage which had been transformed into a press conference room. Supporters of the pair, and reporters, filled the yard all the way to the street. The pair of candidates was flanked by elites from their respective parties.

From PDI-P were Pramono Anung, Tjahjo Kumolo, and Puan Maharani. From Gerindra sat Fadly Zon and Hasjim Djojohadikusumo. Behind them was Workers Party Chairman Mochtar Pakpahan. A banner “For
the Country We Unite”, with images of Megawati and Prabowo, was hanging on the wall.

Dressed in a short-sleeved, light-brown suit jacket, Prabowo issued a political statement. “It is an honor to run with Ibu Megawati,” said this former Commander of the Army Special Forces Command. “We are going to lead change, improve [the standard of] living, and [have] a people’s economy.”

Megawati, who spoke after Prabowo, quoted the words of Sukarno, that the Indonesian people must be able to stand on their own feet. “After meeting several times, viewpoints converged,” said the former Indonesian President (2001-2004), who was wearing a blue-patterned blouse.

Regarding the sharing of duties if elected, Megawati is leaving economic matters to Prabowo. She remembered to ask the government to conduct a presidential election which is honest, fair, direct, public, and by private ballot. There was no question-and-answer session. The 30-minute announcement was
closed with a prayer, then photos. Five minutes later Megawati went inside her home, and Prabowo went to his car to head home.

                                        * * *

THIS meeting of the hearts did not go as smoothly as that banner slogan would have us understand. On Tuesday last week, Megawati was still upset with the steps taken by her colleagues. Some PDI-P elites continued to try and form a coalition with the Democrat Party, which made the best showing in the legislative
election on 9 April.

Supporters of the coalition with Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s party even went a step further. They submitted six names to Cikeas as candidates for the presidential cabinet. Maruarar Sirait was designated to be the State Minister of Youth & Sport Affairs, Puan Maharani as the Minister of Women’s Empowerment,
Effendi Simbolon as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tjahjo Kumolo as Minister of State-Owned Enterprises, Arif Budimanta and Minister of Agriculture, and Hendrawan Supratikno as minister for the economy. “Mas Pramono refused to be submitted as the Minister of Mining & Energy,” said a source at Teuku Umar.

These proposals for the cabinet were submitted when Pramono, Tjahjo, and Puan met Yudhoyono in Cikeas, on Friday two weeks ago. “Ibu (Megawati) did not like it. She insisted that they would not parlay deals with Cikeas,” said a Tempo source. Four PDI-P activists gave the same information.

While this high-level political positioning was going on, Taufiq Kiemas had a heart attack on Wednesday morning. He was rushed to MMC Hospital. According to Puan Maharani, her father was exhausted. However, an insider at Teuku Umar said that Taufiq was overwhelmed that his wife was unwilling to consider SBY.

Megawati stayed on the offensive. After paying a visit to her husband on Wednesday night, she headed to her villa in Gadog, Bogor, to meet Prabowo. They spoke in private, continuing their negotiations over the definition of their respective roles.

While negotiating with Prabowo, Megawati relied on the agility of “three ladies”: Rini Suwandi (former Minister of Industry & Trade), Agnita Singedikane Irsal (Deputy Secretary-General), and Rustriningsih (Deputy Governor of Central Java). “The deal made at the Gadog villa was jointly formulated with those three close friends of hers,” said a Tempo source. After meeting in Gadog, the two agreed to announce their presidential bid the next day at Jl. Teuku Umar.

Hundreds of reporters had assembled at Teuku Umar on Thursday last week. Party officials had already gathered there as well. However, the scheduled announcement failed to take place. The white tent cloth, which had been set up for the declaration, was wrapped in plastic bags and piled up in a corner of the yard.

The negotiations had hit a dead end because Prabowo was making some unreasonable demands. There were seven points, among them filling the posts of cabinet ministers in the fields of the economy and energy. As a vice-presidential candidate, Prabowo asked to be given a role more suited for a prime minister. “That
means that Prabowo would be the one running the republic. The deal fell apart,” said the source. PDI-P felt that this demand did not make sense, as Gerindra had received far less votes than they had.

In this regard, Gerindra Media Center Director Haryanto Taslam said lightheartedly, “That’s what negotiation is for. Each party has certain wishes.” He verified that his party wanted that the ministerial posts in the economic field be left to Gerindra. “Prabowo didn’t ask for a vice-presidential role resembling that of a prime minister,” he said. “This [country] is presidential, according to our constitution.”

Thursday night, the “Megawati for President” campaign team gathered on Jl. Cik Ditiro. After discussing Prabowo’s offer, Megawati, accompanied by Theo Syafei, headed for Batu Tulis Palace. She wanted to ask Prabowo for an explanation about his demands.

On that cold night, Prabowo did not show up. The general sent Fadly Zon, Muchdi Purwoprandjono, and Hasjim Djojohadikusumo. Megawati was reluctant to receive them. She asked Theo to meet the three in the guestroom.

According to PDI-P activist Ganjar Pranowo, Megawati was not worried about the cabinet positions sought by Prabowo. The problem was, he explained, Megawati felt that the demand for a role similar to that of a prime minster was against the constitution.

Megawati’s supporters agreed that if Gerindra insisted upon this demand then they would become an opposition party and not register a presidential candidate. They shut down any possibility of forming a coalition with Yudhoyono. The reason was, according to Ganjar, “Party reputation was at stake.”

The Gerindra camp had also almost given up hope. “If there is no common ground, it is better that PDI-P and Gerindra do not register any presidential candidates,” said Permadi, a member of the Gerindra Board of Patrons. According to him, Gerindra is going to be an opposition party while preparing for the 2014
presidential election.

Threatened by the prospect of failed negotiations, Megawati and Prabowo supporters met again at the Batu Tulis Palace. The two figures sat together around an oval table on the Palace terrace. Also present there were Pramono Anung, Tjahjo Kumolo, Puan Maharani, Fadly Zon, and Muchdi Purwoprandjono. The negotiations started at 2:30pm, taking a break after sundown. An agreement was reached at 9:30pm.

Suffering from heavy flu, Prabowo did his best to appear to be in good spirits. Of course, Megawati did not grant the demand for a prime minister-like role.

-- Dwidjo U. Maksum, Iqbal Muhtarom, Rini Kustiani,    Akbar T.K., Diki Sudrajat (Bogor)

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Parties split over support for SBY’s re-election

The Jakarta Post
May 20, 2009
Erwida Maulia

Cracks appear to be forming in the coalition of 23 political parties backing incumbent President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and running mate Boediono, despite initial displays of unity.

Internal rifts within the United Development Party (PPP) and the National Mandate Party (PAN) surrounding the decision to back the Yudhoyono coalition in the upcoming presidential election are dragging on.

The fact the leaders of the two parties have signed a political contract agreeing to support Yudhoyono seems to have had no impact.

PPP chairman Suryadharma Ali said Tuesday the party would hold an internal meeting in coming weeks to discuss how it should respond to any party members defying party policy by working for other candidates.

Suryadharma said the PPP’s decision to join forces with the coalition led by the Democratic Party (PD) was final.

“We will meet to decide what to do with any members who act against the party policy,” he said. PPP executive Lukman Hakiem Syaifuddin has pledged to campaign for the Jusuf Kalla and Wiranto ticket, who were nominated by the Golkar Party and the People’s Conscience Party (Hanura).

“That is surely a violation of our party policy,” Suryadharma said.

Suryadharma said Lukman informed him via text message that he had decided to side with Kalla and Wiranto as their spokesman.

Previously Suryadharma said he was not concerned by Lukman’s decision, but the PPP chairman has now back flipped, claiming the party must take action against him in accordance with the party rules.

Before joining forces with Yudhoyono, Suryadharma held a series of meetings with Golkar chairman Kalla and the leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), Megawati Soekarnoputri, to consider forming a coalition known then as the “Golden Triangle”. The proposal never materialized, with both
Kalla and Megawati separately running for president.

PAN has been dealing with party conflict since its chief patron Amien Rais gathered party executives to rally support for Yudhoyono while chairman Soetrisno Bachir was leaning toward the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra). Later, Gerindra formed a coalition with the PDI-P.

Soetrisno had been reluctant to agree to a coalition with the PD before its chief patron Yudhoyono personally asked the PAN chairman to sign the deal.

In response to the split, PAN deputy chairman Patrialis Akbar said the party’s constituents were free to choose other candidates in the July presidential election, despite the fact the party has made its official stance clear.

“We won’t enforce sanctions on our members who choose different presidential candidates. They have their rights and we have to respect that,” Patrialis said Tuesday.

Patrialis was one of the PAN leaders to witness Yudhoyono’s declaration to contest the election in Bandung last Friday.

PAN lawmaker Dradjad Wibowo, however, has publicly expressed his support for Kalla and Wiranto. (hdt)

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Aceh Party Wins Election, Without Celebration

The Jakarta Post
May 20, 2009
Hotli Simanjuntak

Banda Aceh

A local party, founded by former rebels of the Aceh Free Movement, was officially announced Monday as the winner of the 9 April legislative election, but no celebrations marked their victory.

No street convoys were conducted by supporters of the Aceh Party which secured 33 seats out of 69 seats in the Aceh Legislative Council (DPRA).

The party spokesman Adnan Beuransyah said although the party secured almost half of the total seats, the results did not satisfy the party.

"The seat allocation method caused my party to lose many seats. Many of our candidates who gained 10,000 votes failed to secure a seat, while candidates from other parties who gained only 7,000 votes secured one seat each," Adnan claimed. "But we are humble. We can accept the results of the election."

The party, which reportedly targeted to win at least 59 of the seats, actually defeated all the national parties, including the Democratic Party, Golkar, the National Mandate Party (PAN), the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), the United Development Party (PPP), the National Awakening Party (PKB), the Cresecent and
Star Party (PBB), the Justice and Unity Party (PKPI), Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Patriot Party.

The Democratic Party secured 10 seats, an increase from six seats in 2004. PAN won five seats, PKS four seats, PPP three seats and PKB, PBB, PKPI, PDI-P and the Patriot Party secured one seat each.

Golkar's seats decreased from 12 seats in 2004 to eight seats and the PPP which won 12 seats in 2004, dropped down to only three seats.

The provincial legislative election attracted participation from 37 national parties and six local parties.

The other five local parties participating were the Aceh People's Party (PRA), the Independent Voice of Aceh People's Party (SIRA), the Aceh Safe and Prosperous Party (PAAS), the United Aceh Party (PBA) and the Aceh Sovereignty Party (PDA). None of these other local parties secured seats.

Aceh Independent Election Commission (KIP) deputy chairman Ilham Syahputra said the result of the election in Aceh is considered valid although there were still complaints on possible election violations.

"Currently, there are 53 cases of election violations in Aceh which were reported to the Constitutional Court," Ilham said, adding results might be changed by the court.

He said KIP was ready to face legal actions in the court. "We have prepared a team to go to Jakarta to face legal actions in the court."

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New Promises for RI's Ethnic Chinese

The Jakarta Post
May 20, 2009

Having just won seats in the House of Representatives, two Chinese-Indonesian legislative candidates have pledged to fight for the rights of the country's minority groups.

Democratic Party legislative candidate Eddy Sadeli said he was keen to focus on supervising public services because many Chinese-Indonesians still faced discrimination when dealing with the bureaucracy.

"It is no secret that Chinese-Indonesian people, especially those living in big cities, are treated like cash-cows in government offices," Eddy said.

Another Democratic Party candidate, Ratnawati Wijana, said it would be her top priority to fight for equal rights and treatment of Indonesia's minority groups.

"I am sure the new House, whose members have more diverse backgrounds, will be able to find solutions to the problems faced by the country's minority groups," she said.

After the 1965 communist "cleansing," many Chinese Indonesians withdrew from politics, and generations that followed focused more on business.

After reformasi, a several Chinese Indonesians began to enter politics again. In the 1999 election, less than 50 Chinese Indonesians ran as legislative candidates, with four of them, including prominent economist Kwik Kian Gie, successfully securing positions at the House.

Five years later, the number increased to 172, running either for legislative seats or positions in the Regional
Representatives Council (DPD). Among a dozen candidates  who secured seats were the National Mandate Party's Alvin Lie Lee Peng and the Democratic Party's Rudianto Tjen.

In the 2009 general elections, according to the Nationalist Democratic Forum (Fordeka), an association of Chinese-Indonesian politicians, 58 Chinese candidates competed in Jakarta for seats in the House, the City Council and the DPD.

Ratnawati and Eddy are the only two Chinese Indonesians among 21 House seat winners from Jakarta.

With escalating religious and group sentiments in recent years, both Ratnawati and Eddy agreed that Chinese Indonesians needed their own representatives in the House to voice their interests.

"If one day, for example, there is a discussion about the implementation of *Islamic* sharia law, we, the
Chinese-Indonesians, will have a way to speak up," Eddy said. (hwa)

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KPU Names Poll Winners

Antara
May 25, 2009

Despite the ongoing election disputes at the Constitutional Court, the General Elections Commission announced on Sunday the names of the winning candidates from the April 9 legislative elections.

Golkar Party deputy chairman Agung Laksono was re-elected to the House of Representatives representing Jakarta. Earlier press reports had suggested that Agung, who is the current House speaker, had not received enough votes to win a seat in the House.

Also elected representing Jakarta were former police chief Adang Daradjatun of the Islam-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), former photo model and psychologist Okky Asokawati of the United Development Party (PPP), Effendi MS Simbolon of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and Marzuki Alie of
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s Democratic Party.

TV show host Tantowi Yahya of the Golkar Party was also elected to the House, along with comedian Dedi S. Gumelar, popularly known as Mi’ing, who ran for the PDI-P in Banten, and information and technology expert Roy Suryo Notodiprojo, who ran under the banner of the Democratic Party in Yogyakarta.

Several cabinet ministers in Yudhoyono’s government were also elected, including Tourism and Culture Minister Jero Wacik, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Freddy Numberi, and State Minister for Administrative Reform Taufiq Effendi, all of whom ran for the Democratic Party, and State Minister for Youth
and Sports Affairs Adhyaksi Dault, who ran for the PKS.

The elections commission, known as the KPU, did delay announcing winners for several electoral districts in East Java, West Java and Central Java.

Party witnesses in those provinces had insisted that the KPU explain the method used to determine election winners in the third round of vote counting.

Under the complicated vote- counting system, the first two rounds of counting are done at the electoral district level based on the number of votes needed to win a seat. Should there still be legislative seats left unassigned to any party at the electoral district level, the votes of parties are counted at the provincial level by taking into account party votes in other electoral districts in the same province, with the seats going
to parties with the highest number of votes.

KPU chairman Abdul Azis Anshary said the commission would make necessary adjustments should the Constitutional Court issue rulings that affected the number of votes certain candidates garnered or the number of seats parties won.

Thirty-eight national parties took part in the April 9 legislative elections, but only nine met the legislative
threshold of 2.5 percent of total valid votes cast to earn the right to take up seats in the House of Representatives.

These nine are the Democratic Party, Golkar, PDI-P, PKS, PPP, Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerinda), the National Mandate Party (PAN), the National Awakening Party (PKB) and the People’s
Conscience Party (Hanura).

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The Thinker: Let the Games Begin

The Jakarta Globe
May 25, 2009
Taufik Darusman

The past week saw President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his running mate, former central bank Governor Boediono, on the defensive as they scrambled to fend off their rivals’ accusations that they were ardent followers of neo-liberalism.

It didn’t really matter whether the majority of voters knew what the term meant; the way the accusation was deftly made left the public perceiving the duo as evil-doers unworthy of holding the nation’s highest offices.

Golkar Party presidential hopeful Jusuf Kalla fired the first salvo, citing Boediono’s refusal while coordinating minister for the economy to give the go-ahead for a power project and Jakarta’s monorail plan as prime examples of the Australian-trained economist’s true leanings.

Ever the savvy campaigner, Vice President Kalla repeated the “Boediono the neo-liberalist” mantra for maximum impact and got away with it. Kalla’s allies joined in the fray and, for good measure, dubbed Boediono “an IMF and World Bank lackey.”

Kalla, however, didn’t give the public the complete story, as the two infrastructure projects actually involved private enterprises seeking foreign loans with a government guarantee.

Understandably, Boediono balked at the idea, arguing that the laws clearly stipulate a project is either state or private funded. He reminded Kalla that the days of the New Order regime, when private projects were funded by foreign loans guaranteed by the state, were a thing of the past.

We can be sure of seeing the presidential campaign heat up in ways that Indonesians have never experienced before

Does Boediono’s strict by-the-book approach entitle the likes of Kalla to call him a neo-liberalist? Of course not, but the accusations left Boediono having to make rebuttals instead of promoting his views on the economy in ways that would strengthen Yudhoyono’s chances on July 8.

Boediono has made it clear that he’s no neo-liberal, much less the International Monetary Fund or World Bank’s man in Indonesia. He may be conservative and unimaginative to the extent that he adheres to time-honored economic principles, but few of his students now occupying key positions fault him for that.

Indeed, being an economist who believes less government is better and who extols the virtues of a free market doesn’t make him a neo-liberal, any more than a politician who believes in a civilian government finds the military reprehensible.

The pre-presidential campaign period has now taken an even nastier tone. The nation had hardly finished mourning the 101 people who died in the crash of an Air Force Hercules C-130 last week when Kalla, again, went on the offensive.

Now, here’s a chess player who dearly holds that a good offense is the best defense. Citing Defense Ministry budget cuts as the cause of the crash, Kalla blamed the government, which he is still part of as vice president, for undermining the country’s military hardware.

Even by his standards, Kalla was completely off the mark this time. First, the cause of the accident has yet to be determined — whether it was due to human error, technical reasons or weather conditions. In any case, the budget cuts he mentioned didn’t include operations and maintenance costs for existing equipment.

Also, whether the antiquated C-130s — once used for the government’s transmigration program, flying people from overpopulated Java to the outer islands — form part of the country’s weapons systems is highly debatable.

Curiously, Kalla found an ally in two-star Army Gen. Tono Suratman, the military commander of South Sumatra, who somehow found time to support Kalla’s contention that defense budget cuts were partly to blame for the tragedy.

Now, why would an Army officer comment on Air Force matters, never mind the dubious reasons behind the decision of certain media outlets to give his opinion coverage?

It turns out that this is the same Tono Suratman who was one of the senior military officers on the ground during the bloody post-East Timor referendum violence. His superior at the time was none other than Wiranto, then a four-star general and commander of the Armed Forces, who is now Kalla’s running mate.

Tono and other senior officers were brought to trial for their alleged involvement in the melee but were later acquitted due to military pressure, according to insiders.

It’s difficult to prove if Tono’s comments were part of a concerted effort by rivals to blame Yudhoyono for policies that may or may not have led to the Hercules crash.

What is increasingly apparent is that we can be sure of seeing the presidential campaign heat up in ways that Indonesians have never experienced before.

Taufik Darusman is a veteran Jakarta-based journalist.

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Insurgencies Litmus Tests for SBY, May Challenge Reelection

The Jakarta Post
May 25, 2009
Lilian Budianto

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is coming under scrutiny over his credentials in making peace with separatists in Papua, as well as quelling sectarian conflicts in the predominantly Muslim country.

Although pollsters predict he will prevail in the July 8 presidential election SBY's wariness in cracking down
deep-rooted separatism and his tendency to bow to Muslim groups' pressure in handling sectarian conflicts will undermine his quest for presidency, analysts say.

SBY has only played a second fiddle in ending the 30 year-old insurgency in Aceh, home to huge reserves of oil and gas. He credited the peace deal, signed in 2005 in Helsinki, to Vice President Jusuf Kalla, his rival in the upcoming election.

Kalla navigated Indonesian delegations in negotiating the peace terms with the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) from Jakarta. Kalla accomplished a job that four previous presidents had failed, including Megawati Soekarnoputri, who will also seek a five-year mandate in the coming polls.

"Kalla managed to ensure the separatists to cease their armed fighting and remain with the Republic of Indonesia in return for a number of autonomy offers," said Ahmad Syafi'ie Maarif, the former chairman of influential Islamic organization Muhammadiyah.

Kalla offered a special autonomy deal that included 70 percent of shares yielded from Aceh natural resources, implementation of sharia, existence of local parties and amnesty for rebels.

Although the special autonomy deal had been met with protests by opposition party, the peace pact was touted by the international community as a model to end separatism worldwide, as against use of military force.

"Kalla succeeded where his boss had failed. and the highlights of the Aceh peace deal will put SBY in a very weak position ahead of the polls," Syafi'ie said Sunday.

As the chief security minister under Megawati's presidency, SBY failed to maintain a 2002 ceasefire negotiated with GAM. The government then imposed a martial law in Aceh in mid-2003 due to worsening tensions with the rebel group.

Peace talks resumed after Aceh was devastated by tsunami in December 2004, which claimed up to 150,000 lives.

As the chief welfare minister under President Megawati, Kalla successfully brought conflicting parties in the Central Sulawesi town of Poso and Maluku to sign peace pacts in 2001 and 2002 respectively.

SBY had only a minor portfolio in securing the peace deals, which ended almost four years of Muslim-Christian conflicts that killed up to 8,000 people and displaced more than 520,000 others.

"SBY has been proved weak when it comes to handling pressure from Muslim groups," said Bantarto Bandoro, who chairs the Indonesian Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).

"In contrast, Kalla is able to strike a more balanced position as a mediator."

Bantarto said SBY's chances to prove his leadership in tackling insurgency and sectarian conflicts would rest on how he would quell tensions in the volatile province of Papua.

The country's easternmost province of Papua is underdeveloped but rich in natural resources with a majority of Christian population. Although Papua was given special autonomy in 2002, tension continues to run high as a low key separatist movement still wages independence campaigns. Clashes between security personnel and rebels of the Free Papua Organization have erupted occasionally out of trivial disputes.

In a sign of embracing defiant Papua, SBY invited exiled founder of the Free Papua Movement Nicolas Jouwe to Jakarta in March to ask him to help end the four-decade of rebellion. However, a chance for long-standing peace remains bleak as Nicolas's return to fulfil the government's invitation has enraged separatist
leaders in Papua, stoking even more tension with the military.

"SBY has to show a clear platform in following up  Papua issues, which will remain the key factor to judge his capability to rule," Bantarto said.

"He should pay attention to the sensitivity of Papuans, majority of whom are non-Muslims, in offering a settlement over grievances that they have been abandoned by the government."

The geographically-isolated Papua has become the center of attention from major powers like the United States, whose copper and gold mining company Freeport has been operating for some 40 years on the island while the natives have lived in poverty and illiteracy.

"SBY still has lots of space to work on Papua as grievances still simmer below the surface," Bantarto said.

"This could be a chance for SBY to outstrip Kalla's international popularity".

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Papua police on alert ahead of presidential election

Jakarta Post
Friday, 15 May, 2009

TIMIKA, Papua: Papuan police have increased security measures ahead of the upcoming presidential elections to ensure against any possible disruption to the nationwide vote by armed groups.

The upgrade took place in a number of particular areas, including the regencies of Puncak Jaya, Pegunungan Bintang and Supiori, anticipated as the areas most likely to see a disturbance from armed groups.

"A series of violent attacks during and after the recent legislative elections has taught police a good lesson," Papua deputy chief Brig. Gen. Ahmad Riadi Koni said, referring to a bomb attack in Jayapura, gas station blast in Biak and a murder in Wamena.

"Files on the suspects from the Jayapura attack have been handed over to the local prosecutors office for further legal processing," he said.

Riadi Koni said the inaccessible mountain regions will be the most prone to security threats both throughout the campaign period and on voting day.

"But all the preparations for strengthening security have been made," he added. - JP

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Toward a Healthy Presidential Debate

The Jakarta Globe
May 26, 2009

Editorial

Voters across the archipelago will not have missed the telltale signs of a political season in full swing. Grandiose promises by the candidates to bring prosperity to the poor, grow the economy by double digits, restore the domestic economy, undo the current government’s failed policies. The list goes on.

In terms of sheer political theater, the head of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), former President Megawati Sukarnoputri, and her running mate, former Suharto-era Gen. Prabowo Subianto, outdid their rivals this past weekend in projecting a pro-poor stance by announcing their candidacy at a
dump site in West Java. The move seemingly was aimed at appealing to the sympathies of the  downtrodden.

Over the past week, the three presidential candidates and their running mates have been busy answering questions posed by different segments of society.

First, it was outlining their economic platforms to members of Kadin, the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Then there were meetings over the weekend with leading cultural figures.

If the candidates actually do intend to raise living standards and lift millions out of poverty, they will need to go beyond rosy rhetoric and spell out detailed plans on how they will tackle serious issues such as education and health care reform. In both these areas, Indonesia is sadly lacking both in quantity
and quality of service.

Education is at the heart of our nation’s drive toward modernity. We need to educate our young with the right values and the right skills if they are to become productive members of society. We need to produce more engineers, doctors, scientists, accountants, lawyers and those who are schooled in the humanities. Education reform must start at the very bottom of the pyramid during the formative years and work upward to the university level.

For too long, education has been put on the back burner in terms of government priorities. This must change and the candidates must be made to spell out their education policies so voters can make informed choices.

The same is true for health care. The need to revamp the country’s creaking health care system is urgent, but so far none of the candidates have said anything on the issue.

Many public hospitals are in a deplorable state, with inadequate equipment and not enough trained personnel. Indonesia needs to open up its health care sector to highly qualified doctors from around the world who can help us raise quality.

Common standards must be set for all the country’s hospitals, public and private. This is the only way we can raise the skill levels of our health care practitioners.

The candidates must move beyond platitudes and discuss substantive issues. Kadin’s effort to flesh out economic policies is a good first step, although the candidates got off easy in not having to go into the details of their economic projections.

A healthy democracy requires serious debate on important issues. We look forward to such a debate in the coming weeks.

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